Building block



11 28 1927. e R. L. MORRIS BUILDING BLOCK Filed Sept. 1926 BY m ATTORNEYS Patented June 28, 1927.

UNITED STATES RAYMOND L. MORRIS, OF HONOLULU, TERRITORY OF HAWAII, ASSIGNOB '10 LEWEBS 1,634,157 PATENT OFFICE.

& COOKIE, LTD, OF HONOLULU, HAWAII, A CORPORATION OF HAWAII.

BUILDING 31.00:.

Application filed September 8, 1928. Serial No. 184,288.

The present invention is concerned rimarily with the provision of a buil ing block for use in foundation work which is so designed that it will effectively prevent ground-nesting termites or similar insect pests from gaining access to the woodwork which is su ported above the foundation.

The termites in certain localities, particularly in Hawaii, cause serious damage to building structures of all kinds, and are apparently capable of going through any sort of building material, except metal and solid concrete. The present invention aims to provide a foundation block equipped with a metal guard which will prevent the passage of the termites from the ground to the superstructure. v

An object of the invention is to provide a block of this character, preferably of concrete, which may be handled in the ordinary manner, and which is so constructed that the metal guard plate which is associated with it, does not interfere with the ordinary stacking of the blocks and is guarded against the collection of dbris'thereon by bein set inwardly from the outer face. of the lock.

Other objects of the invention are to pro-. vide a block of this general character of simple practical construction, which will be rugge durable and efficient in use, and which is well suited to the requirements of economical manufacture.

With the above noted and other objects in view, the invention consists in certain novel features of construction and combinations and arrangements of parts, as will be more fully heremafter set forth and pointed out in the claims. The invention may be more fully understood from the following description in connection with the accompany ing drawings, wherein- Fig. 1 is a perspective view showing a concrete block embodying the present invention.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional plan view on approximately the line 33 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 1, but illustrating a slightly modified form of' block.

Fig. 5 is a vertical sectional view on the line 5- 5 of Fig. 4-,

Fig. 6 is a sectional detail lllustratmg the and approximatel rectangular side faces 12.

of any suitable material It may be forme Cast into the which is free from voids.

block is a guard plate 13 preferably of the same general shape as the top and bottom surfaces of the block, but of sli htly smaller dimensions. Plate 13 is preferaily provided with a central opening 14 therein, so that the concrete or other material of the block may form a bond throu hout and insure the retention of the plate m'proper position. Side faces'12 of the block are preferably formed with relatively wide deep rooves 15 which expose the lateral edges of t e late 13. The plate edges are spaced inwar ly a suflicient distance so that they are protected by the to and bottom of the block against falling d ris, against accidental injury, and to permit the ordinary stacking and handling of the blocks.

Preferably the edges of the plate are sharpened as indicated at 16' in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, although they may if desired, be downwardly flanged as at 17 in Figs. 5 and 6. In the latter instance the ends of the flanges 17 are welded together or the flanged plate is formed by a. single stampingoperation, so thatthe flanges will be continuous.

Obviously the block instead of having'rectangular upper and lower faces, might be ofany regular polygonal shape in horizontal cross section. The grooves 15 instead of being V-shaped' might assume many other forms, and while I have shown the plate edges treated intwo ways to' prevent the passage of termites, any other method of shaping or treating the edges of the plate to accomplish this result would be within the spirit of the present invention.

The manner of using the blocks is to mount them directly u on a stone footing, such as. 20 in Fig. 6, an support the wooden foundation posts 21 upon the blocks, the

superstructure of the building being formed any desired manner;

I may briefly explain the manner inwhlch the guard plate 13 serves to prevent the termites from reaching the wooden portion of the building as follows. The groundnesting termites will not work in the light,

and in cases where the have to come 1nto the open air, they buil runways or tunnels of bits of wood, dirt, etc, through which they find access to other protected spots. It has been proved that the termite will not build his runway over the shar ed 'e of a piece of metal on account of t e difiiculty which he encounters in balancing his heavy body and working on the runway at the same time. The metal guard is thus eifective, and if the block is of solid concrete without voids, there is no danger of the termite working his way through the block. In an attempt to reach the wooden building which is $11 ported above the blocks, the termite will have to come into the light and build-a runway over the block until the metal guard plate is reached, at which point it will be efi'ectively sto ped.

Debris from the buil ing operation is extremely unlike guard plate, inasmuch as this plate is protected by'the upper portion of the block and is set inwardly from the extreme lateral edges of the block. There is also no danger of damaging the plate by accidentally dropping material upon it, and there is no ;inconvenience encountered in the ordinary shi ment, handling or stacking of the blocks. bviously the slzes of the blocks might be considerably varied, itbeing sufiicient for all practical purposes if they are high enough to en port the wooden portion of the build: in a out six inches above the ground.

arious changes and alterations might be made in the general form and arrangement of parts described without departing from the invention. Hence I do not wish to limit myself to the details set forth, but shall consider m self at liberty to make such changes an alterations as fairly fall within the s irit .and scope of the appended claims.

I c aim: 1. A building block including top and bottom faces and side faces and a plate projecting laterally from the side faces of the block, the edges of said plate being shaped to prevent the passage of groundnestingtermites or similar insect pests from the bottom to the to thereof.

2. A building bloc including top and botly to collect on the projecting assess? tom faces and side faces and a plate projecting laterally from the side faces of the block, 5

the edges ofnsaid plate being shaped to prevent the' passage of ground-nesting termltes sharpened.

3. A building block including top and bottom faces and side faces and aplate projecting laterally from the side faces of the block, the edges of said plate bein shaped to preventt e passage of groun -nestmg termitesor similar insect pests from the bottom to the top thereof, said plate being turned downwardly to form a continuous de-' pending flan e.

4. A buildi ng block including top and bottom faces and side faces and a-plate projecting laterally from the side faces of the block, the edges of said plate being shaped to prevent the passage of .ground-nestin termites or similar insect pests from the ottom to the top thereof, the sides ofsaid block being grooved and said plate edges, lying within said groove.

5. A building block including top and bottoin faces and side faces and a plate projecting laterally; from therside faces of the block, the edges of said plate being'sllaped to prevent the passage of ground-nestin termites or similar insect pests from the ottom' .to the top .thereof, the sides of said block having. V-shaped grooves therein and the plate projecting laterally from the bottom of said grooves and terminating short. of. the lateral edges of the top and bottom of the block.

6. A inolded concrete block having approximately parallel top and bottom faces, a plate molded in the block and lying between and in substantial parallelism with said faces, the ed es of the plate projecting laterally from t e body of the b oak and eing shaped to prevent the passa e of termites from the bottom to the to 0% the block.

7. A molded concrete. lock having approximately parallel top and bottom faces, a

block.

RAYMOND-L. MORRIS, 

